This invention relates to the reduction of hazard and/or driver fatigue resulting from crosswinds by means of directional control and stability devices on a vehicle body.
Vehicle operation in a crosswind can give rise to the vehicle body turning "out of wind" (i.e. the nose or bows of the vehicle body moves laterally in the same direction as the crosswind is blowing). This is because the crosswind creates a region of high suction on the leeward side of the vehicle, and/or of raised pressure on the windward side, and because the regions of highest suction usually occur over the front 20% of the vehicle body length.
A vehicle such as an automobile may well continue on its intended path, but to the driver, the lateral movement of the front of the vehicle will give rise to the impression that the vehicle is veering off-course. This can lead to driver fatigue and/or to the driver making unwarranted steering corrections which are in fact unnecessary and can cause hazard to his own vehicle or to others.
It is known that the addition of a more or less upright or vertical fin (or fins) on top and at the rear of a vehicle can produce a reduction in the tendency to turn out of wind, but such fins are visually obtrusive, structurally weak (being encastre at only one end) and they can impose roll on a vehicle in the course of applying the required lateral force(s)--and they will usually increase vehicle drag at any wind condition.
This patent describes an approach by which the effect of front end pressure and suction forces can be at least partly countered by forces produced near the tail or stern of the vehicle, and by means which are not only unobtrusive but which may also provide a reduction in vehicle aerodynamic drag.